Tuesday, September 17, 2013

Pinecrest's second annual planting day has been announced for October 19. Bring wildflower seeds, bulbs or native perennials to plant on or around your site, or anywhere in the park that could use a little love. This year we are going to have a fun, new activity: making scarecrows! PCR will provide cornstalks and burlap and folks should bring their own "outfits" to stuff. (Things like old flannel shirts, worn out blue jeans and funny hats work well.) The prize for Best Scarecrow will be a giant pumpkin provided by the Mountain Chickadee Farm. Bring your friends and family. Refreshments will be provided. Look for time and details on the clubhouse chalkboard.

Thursday, September 12, 2013

Most people go on camping trips because they’re tired of the city or ready for an adventure. Whether you enjoy biking, hunting or any other outdoor activity, camping offers you a way to focus completely on a hobby for a few days without external distractions.

What you might not realize is that camping can help you live a longer and better.

1. The Fresh Air

When you spend time near a lot of trees, you take in more oxygen. That feeling of happiness that you get when you take your first breath of air at the campground isn’t all in your head–well, technically it is, but it’s a release of serotonin from the extra oxygen. Your body can function with less strain when there’s plenty of oxygen.

That’s not the only benefit of fresh air. Research shows that some time outdoors can improve your blood pressure, improve digestion and give your immune system an extra boost. When you spend a few days outside, you get some serious health benefits from the extra oxygen and low levels of pollutants.

2. Socialization

Camping alone is plenty of fun, but if you bring along a friend or family member, you’ll enjoy a unique experience together that will help you keep a healthy, happy relationship.

Socializing can extend your lifespan and delay memory problems according to research published in the American Journal of Public Health, and apart from the medical benefits, a few close relationships make life more fun. Invite a few friends on your next trip out.

3. Improved Moods

Regular campers will often talk about how the first few days back from a trip seem happier. This isn’t without merit; spending some time outside in the sunlight can even out the levels of melatonin in your brain.

Melatonin is the chemical that makes you feel tired and can induce feelings of depression, so by camping, you can enjoy better overall moods during and after your trip.

4. Less Stress

Camping also allows you to cope with stress. Stress can negatively affect your health in just about every way possible, and you’re putting much less strain on your mental and physical faculties by giving yourself some stress-free time at the campsite.

The lack of stress is related to the rise in oxygen levels, higher levels of serotonin and managed levels of melatonin mentioned above. There’s also an emotional component at work here, since it’s harder to be annoyed or angry when you’re doing something that you enjoy.

5. Exercise

Let’s not forget the most obvious benefit of camping: you’re spending a lot of time performing physical activities. Even if you’re taking a fishing trip, you’re burning more calories than you’d burn sitting around an office, and if you hike or bike, you’re performing cardiovascular exercise that will help keep your heart and lungs healthy.

Your activity levels will vary, but hikers burn anywhere from 120-300 calories per hour. Bikers burn 300-500 calories per hour, and fly fishing can burn up to 200 calories per hour. No wonder you work up such an appetite during a long camping trip.

6. Sunshine

Sunshine feels great on your skin, and there’s an evolutionary reason for that. When you’re out in direct sunlight, you’re taking on a ton of Vitamin D, which allows your body to absorb calcium and phosphorous.

7. A Good Night’s Sleep

Assuming that you’ve got decent camping gear, you’ll fall fast asleep after a day full of outdoor activities. Sleep has an effect on all of your body processes and can reduce inflammation, improve your cardiovascular system and help you stay alert.

Many campers report better sleep cycles when they return for a trip.

8. Good Food

If you pack s’mores, you’re not seeing any particularly solid health benefits in this department. However, if you’re fond of fishing and hunting, you’ll likely eat a large amount of protein and healthy fats on your camping trip.

You won’t get any preservatives or unnatural ingredients in a fresh lake-caught fish, and all of the exercise on your trip will help you digest.

9. New Challenges

No two camping trips are exactly the same, and that’s a good thing. Studies from the University of Texas and University of Michigan show that new experiences help to keep brains healthy.

New activities that are both physically and intellectually stimulating have the greatest effect on brain health, and camping fits both of these criteria.

10. Meditation

When you go camping, don’t forget to turn off your cell phone. Leave the tablet and the laptop computer at home. Try to disconnect for a few days and enjoy the simplicity of the natural experience.

This isn’t just a general tip to help you enjoy the experience; if you’re willing to enjoy your surroundings without any outside distractions, you could increase your lifespan. Jon Kabat-Zinn, founder of the Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Program, believes that turning off the cell phone and engaging with nature is one of the simplest ways to get the health benefits of meditation.

The Mayo Clinic reports that meditation may improve a number of serious medical conditions by increasing self awareness and giving a person stress-reduction tools. If you suffer from depression, fatigue, heart disease or even allergies, research shows that camping can improve your overall health.

Just don’t forget to commit to the experience–if your cell phone’s off, you’re on your way to developing a stimulating, tranquil hobby that will keep you healthy for years to come.

pinecrestretreat.com

California's Vintage Trailer Capital:

"Welcome Home!"

Pinecrest Resort is America's foremost location for vintage travel trailers and those who love them. A growing community of creative individuals who enjoy spending time in nature, and with one other: hiking, swimming, gardening, grilling, roasting marsh-mellows over a camp fire, participating in the art of conversation and best of all sharing in the preservation of the great American travel trailers from by-gone days.

Tucked into a tree-shaded canyon high in the Cuyamaca Mountains an hour’s drive from downtown San Diego, is the homebase for nearly 100 vintage travel trailers and motorhomes. Call it a yacht club for RVs, where owners have permanent spaces to park their rigs and set up for outdoor living. You can spend as much or as little time as you want with your RV. You can entertain friends and family, cocoon yourself with a book, even meet some new friends who love old trailers as much as you do.

Visit Pinecrest and stay in one of our Vintage Rental Travel Trailers! Go to PinecrestRetreat.com for details!

Viva Vintage Travel Trailers!

Restoring Vintage Trailers is an American Tradition.

The Evolution is YOU!

Pinecrest is a gathering place for like-minded creative people who value the ideas of conservation, preservation, restoration and good taste. These concepts are epitomized by the vintage travel trailers Pinecresters own and enjoy. There is a special element of "recycled eco-chic" which is at large in the park, and with that sensibility there is also an emerging community.

At Pinecrest, living well doesn't mean having a lot of money. Living well means cooking with friends, spending time in nature, having room to breathe and perhaps an occasional moment of tranquility. But more that that, Pinecrest is a work in progress. Blending old ideas with new: solar power, camp fires, swimming, yoga, napping, music, board games and conversation are all a part of the mix.

Pinecrest is unique because it is a "members only" retreat, with room to spread out and the freedom to make your space your own. It has one of the largest, cleanest solar-heated pools in all of Southern California. Pinecrest is a safe place, where members may come to find personal solitude or bring their friends and family to enjoy quality time together.

But best of all Pinecrest is an evolving community, and the evolution is you!

pinecrest retreat: camping with style

Pinecrest's colorful history:

Pinecrest got its start in the early 1960s as a retreat for the workers of General Dynamics and Convair. The early site holders at Pinecrest brought in an array of trailers—some fresh from the dealer, others from by-gone eras. The unique history of Pinecrest means there are many hidden gems nestled here, and you’ll sometimes find a classic trailer bounded by the trees that have grown up around it.

In the seventies, Pinecrest became privately owned and managed by Stan and Dian Cornette, who lovingly maintained the park and drew in a more diverse group of campers, reaching out to new generations.

Stan and Dian retired in December 2005, and new owners Frank Spevacek and Kathleen Rosenow have brought a new spirit to the park, building on its history as they shape its future. Kathleen and Frank are dedicated to making Pinecrest a living lesson in “Green” technology. They are currently in the process of bringing a ecologically savvy sensibility to the park, including solar technology, modernized water systems, a new shade pavilion for the pool area, and other innovations that will use recycled materials and sustainable technologies.

The “golden years” of travel trailers came after the aviation surge of World War II, and many iconic travel trailers, like the Airstream and the Spartans, trace their lineage back to the war effort. Companies that had built tens of thousands of aircraft in order to win the war converted to making travel trailer in order to celebrate our victory in the post-war era, in the ultimate expression of “swords into plowshares.” Many of these trailer models had a hopeful, futuristic style and used “space age” technology to promote the feeling of a boundless future. At Pinecrest, there is a unique mixture of old and new, retro and techno, rustic and wrangled, vintage and vibrant. Pinecrest is where yesterday’s future meets the vitality of today.